Alonso laments “strange and difficult” weekend

Despite having both Ferraris finishing in the Top 10 and banking valuable points for the Constructors Championship, Fernando Alonso was left wanting after he fell short of the podium at the Australian Grand Prix.

Alonso was struggling all weekend to acclimate to the new driving characteristics of the new F14T, saying the experience of the new power units felt both strange and difficult.

“I’d have liked to start the season with a podium, but getting both cars to the flag is a good result, which can give us confidence, especially on the reliability front,” said Alonso. “I had some problems with the electric motor at the start and had to make a few changes from the steering wheel, but after the first ten laps everything went well. When I managed to pass Hulkenberg after the pit stop my pace was definitely better, although it was impossible to overtake.”

While the Ferrari power units were off to a reliable start, Alonso admitted bridging the gap between Ferrari and the Mercedes power units will be a tall order.

“At the end of the day, both Ferraris crossed the line, which was a good effort for the team and a good achievement. We finished 35 seconds behind leader Rosberg so this is probably too much and we need to do better in Malaysia.”

“We are Ferrari. We are a strong team. I think these guys – They know what they are doing. After the first race you have probably a little bit better picture of which areas you need to improve the car after running behind some people like I did with Hulkenberg for many laps. So we need to analyze, we need to take care of every detail for Malaysia and be a little bit stronger there.”

“We still have lots to learn about this new Formula 1, as the race was very strange and very difficult. But it’s only the start. We must concentrate on doing better in Malaysia.”

Images Courtesy of Scuderia Ferrari

Peter Leung

Peter is a freelance journalist and graphics editor at Richland F1. His work has been featured in the Australian Formula 3 Series, A1GP and the Champ Car World Series. A contributor to E-Racing Magazine, Peter has appeared on BBC World & AOL's Autoblog Podcast as guest F1 correspondent. He can be found musing about all manner of things motorsport under his nom de plume on Twitter @BaronVonClutch.